WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT PROJECT BREATHES NEW LIFE INTO COUNTY CRICKET

Cricket in the north of England is experiencing a surge in player participation, club membership, coaching and volunteer roles thanks to a £20,000 staff development project led by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and SkillsActive.

To celebrate the success of the project, a Twenty20 Cup match between Yorkshire Carnegie and Derbyshire Phantoms was held at the Yorkshire County Cricket Club.

The ECB and SkillsActive – the Sector Skills Council for Active Leisure and Learning – have been working closely for the past two years to identify ways of developing cricket’s professional and volunteer workforce to meet the changing needs of the ECB’s customers. In recent months, the focus has been on developing the management and leadership skills of 24 paid cricket development staff deployed by the ECB across the six counties in the north. The role of the development staff is to administer the growth of the game, from professional level down to the grass roots.

The management and leadership programme, developed in conjunction with Wakefield College, was based on a general exploration of key elements of the National Occupational Standards for management and leadership, including self management and personal skills, facilitating change, working with people, using resources and achieving results.

The outcomes of the programme have been extremely positive, with a 27 per cent increase in cricket participation, a 16 per cent increase in club membership and a 26 percent increase in coaching/volunteer roles across the northern region in the last year.

Brokered by SkillsActive, funding for the management and leadership programme was secured through the Train to Gain Enhancement Fund in Yorkshire and through management and leadership funding by Business Link in the North West and North East regions.

Pete Ackerley, head of development for the ECB, said: “Our cricket development staff have a vital role to play at the ECB and by investing in their personal development, we’ve been able to make a significant difference to cricket in the north of England. In the past year, we’ve delivered on all our key strategic outcomes, increasing player participation, as well as membership in the clubs. Through effective management and leadership, we’ve been able to identify opportunities and tackle barriers to participation in cricket.

“The match today is to say thank you to SkillsActive for helping us achieve these outcomes and to highlight just how important it is to invest in the skills of your staff.”

SkillsActive chief executive, Stephen Studd, said: “It is SkillsActive’s role to ensure governing bodies of sport receive the support they require to develop their workforce and ultimately achieve their organisational objectives, so we are thrilled that the ECB is seeing tangible results from its work with SkillsActive in the north.

“Like any organisation or business, good management and leadership is fundamental to success. Providing opportunities for managers to develop can therefore have a huge impact on your business.”

The ECB and SkillsActive are now working in partnership with the National Skills Academy for Sport and Active Leisure, Sports Coach UK and UKCC to implement a scheme in cricket’s professional and community clubs in the north of England specifically focused on the personal development of paid coaches, officials and volunteers, delivering participation and talent development opportunities. The scheme will incorporate a coaching bursary programme to increase the number and quality of qualified cricket coaches in the region, with the aim of growing and sustaining participation levels and increasing the satisfaction of their experience.

For further details on the work that the College continue to do in Leadership and Development, contact us on 01924 789715